By Kate Leo
Learning about the social determinants of health in my public health classes has led me to understand a lot more about food deserts. A food desert is a prime example of how a variety of social factors lead to worsened health outcomes of individuals and families. The main health outcome that is linked to food deserts is obesity (Caporuscio). One in three adults are obese in the United States, and the prevalence of obesity has doubled between 1980 and 2008. About $150 billion is spent on medical care costs related to obesity (Weiss). Obesity also causes other long-term health issues such as hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, stroke, and even some types of cancer. We are facing an obesity epidemic, and we need to solve the problem.
Food deserts contribute to the issue because they are “areas in which residents are hard-pressed to find affordable, healthy food—are part of the landscape of poor, urban neighborhoods across the United States” (Brooks). Because healthy food is so difficult to access in these areas, fast food becomes an easy, affordable option. Those that are impoverished, are a minority, have no transportation, obtained less than a high school degree, and out of work are at an increased risk for living in a food desert (Haworth). These social factors underlie the health issues that doctors face in clinics.
Unfortunately, health care systems get into the habit of medicalizing problems. Medicalization means that issues are being treated as clinical, with medicine as a primary treatment (Lantz). For example, if a patient comes in for heart disease that is a result of obesity, doctors would most likely prescribe medicine or surgery to fix the problem. While this is needed for the individual at the moment, the real issue is not being fixed (Lantz). Even if the patient receives medication to relieve the clinical issue, they are still not going to be eating healthy if they live in a food desert. As long as our healthcare system is not looking to enact preventative measures, overall population health will not see improvements.
Luckily, food deserts have become an issue that people are attempting to fix, and there are many solutions that seem to help. One example that I found, is the community garden initiative, where the American Community Garden Association provides resources for 18,000 gardens all across the United States and even Canada (Endicott). Community gardens can also be a great way to engage people and have them take the initiative of their health. Ultimately, there needs to be widespread, systematic change that addresses the underlying cause for clinical issues.
Sources:
Caporuscio, Jessica. “Food Deserts: Definition, Effects, and Solutions.” Medical News Today, MediLexicon International, 22 June 2020, www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/what-are-food-deserts.
Endicott, Sabrina, et al. “Five Innovative Solutions From ‘Food Desert’ Activists.” Food Tank, 27 Nov. 2016, foodtank.com/news/2013/05/five-innovative-solutions-from-food-desert-activists/.
Haworth, Kate, "The Birchwood Food Desert: a Neighborhood's Fight for Food Justice" (2019). WWU Honors Program Senior Projects. 304.
Lantz, Paula M. “The Medicalization of Population Health: Who Will Stay Upstream?: Milbank Quarterly.” Milbank Memorial Fund, 18 Mar. 2019, www.milbank.org/quarterly/articles/the-medicalization-of-population-health-who-will-stay-upstream/.
Weiss, Audrey J, and Anne Elixhauser. “Obesity-Related Hospitalizations, 2004 versus 2009: Statistical Brief #137.” Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) Statistical Briefs, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US), July 2012.
Comments